Diagnostic and interventional radiology interest groups: comparison of members, activities, and funding

Medical school interest groups (IGs) increase student exposure to medical specialties. The organization of US radiology IGs (RIGs), particularly the representation of diagnostic radiology and interventional radiology, is not well described. This study aimed to determine RIG members, activities, and funding, and to compare diagnostic and interventional RIGs.

A 28-question survey was sent to RIG leaders at 154 medical schools, addressing the number and demographics of RIG members, activities organized, and funding amounts and allocations. Descriptive statistics and comparisons between diagnostic, interventional, and hybrid RIGs were performed.

In total, 40 responses were received, representing diagnostic (26%, 9/34), interventional (15%, 5/34), and hybrid (59%, 20/34) RIGs (not all responses reported a category). The median membership number was 30 (range: 10-100), with a median of 65 for diagnostic, 37.5 for interventional, and 25 for hybrid RIGs (P = 0.01). Most (18/27, 67%) RIGs received low funding (< USD 500/year): 0% (0/18) for diagnostic, 16.7% (3/18) for interventional, and 83.3% (15/18) for hybrid RIGs (P = 0.02). Low-funding RIGs reported a median of 30 members compared with 45 in high-funding RIGs (≥ USD 500/year) (P = 0.015). Approximately equal membership between men and women was reported by 5/17 (29.4%) low-funding RIGs and 7/8 (87.5%) high-funding RIGs (P = 0.020). Moreover, 6/18 (33.3%) low-funding groups "strongly agreed" that their RIG positively influenced members to pursue radiology, compared with 7/9 (77.8%) high-funding groups (P = 0.034).

The findings show that diagnostic, interventional, and hybrid RIGs differ in membership and funding. Greater funding is correlated with larger membership, stronger reported influence on specialty choice, and roughly equal membership between men and women.

Boosting RIG funding may enhance recruitment into radiology. RIGs provide students with opportunities to explore radiology as a career, with career panels being the most commonly organized activity.